“I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord;
Whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will never die”
This is today’s verse before the Gospel. It is the ultimate assurance from God, that we will be saved if we believe and trust in Him completely.
Today’s long gospel narrates the story of Lazarus and his two sisters, Martha and Mary, beloved friends of Jesus.
We all know the story of Mary being the one who listened at the feet of Jesus while Martha (who I completely relate with) was the one busy with all the hospitality chores of cooking, cleaning, and serving for Jesus and his entourage.
But did you know that Mary was the one who had anointed the Lord with perfumed oil and dried his feet with her hair?
Not in a Rush
While Jesus was yet far off from Bethany where Lazarus and his sisters lived, He was informed of Lazarus’ illness, but interestingly, did not rush there to be with His friend. It states in the gospel that He remained for two days in the place where He was. That’s interesting. He knew what was going to happen and what He was going to do.
So, two days later, He told his disciples that he wanted to return to Judea, saying “Our friend Lazarus is asleep, but I am going to awaken him.” The disciples thought Jesus was referring to ordinary sleep so Jesus specified to them “Lazarus has died. And I am glad for you that I was not there, that you may believe. Let us go to him.”
We know the story of Jesus arriving in Bethany after Lazarus had been in the tomb for 4 days, and Martha’s scolding “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
Of course, Jesus was also aware of the neighbors and onlookers commenting “Could not the one who opened the eyes of the blind man have done something so that this man would not have died?”
Lack of Faith
And Jesus was perturbed. How frustrating it must have been for Jesus to see the lack of faith, despite all that He did and taught them. When He commanded them to remove the stone covering the tomb, Martha said “Lord, by now there will be a stench; he has been dead for four days.” Jesus’ frustration flared up when he said to her “Did I not tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God?”
Jesus finally cried out in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” and the dead man came out, shuffling, as his hands and feet were tied with burial bands and his face was wrapped in a cloth.
Finally, many of the Jews who had come to Mary and seen what He had done began to believe in Him.
Blessed are we who have not seen, and yet believe in the Son of Man and His promise of eternal life. Let us continue in our Lenten journey … to the promise of the Resurrection !
